Regrets and New Beginnings
by Vasooki
Summary: Lelouch and C.C. are on their way to their new lives after the war, and a bitter memory is stirred withing Lelouch. CluClu. :D


**AN: I don't own Code Geass, or the characters... So sad I know.  
**

"Geass brings solitude and loneliness to all who use it, right Lelouch?"

"Not quite C.C.," Lelouch chuckled. "All tasks at hand have been cleared."

Lelouch tugged the reins, bringing the cart to a halt. He then proceeded to peel off layer upon layer of the clothing he had on, stripping down to simply a white tank top and a pair of faded jeans. Feeling the breeze against his barren arms felt nice.

It was a mild day out, although not a day one would wish to be donning  
the myriad of layers he had previously been wearing. It felt rather like a summer morning, before the sun beats down from above, although it was already midday.

The clicking of the horses and the hum of the cicadas was almost hypnotizing as the modest little cart wore on. C.C. lazed amongst the hay the wagon carried, using her precious Cheese-kun as a pillow, wearing her favorite dress. It was very similar to the one she had worn when Shirley had lost her memories. She laid there contemplating how such simple things could bring about the worst memories.

Breaking the awkward silence, C.C. asked "So Lelouch, where exactly _are_ you taking us to?" She hung upside down from her perch atop the wagon, her pigtails dangerously close to obscuring Lelouch's view of the road.

After a momentary pause Lelouch replied, "I built a big white house for you. It's a quiet little home, although it's not in Australia, and we don't have to take a plane to get there."

"Very funny Lelouch, but seriously where are we going?"

"You're rather inquisitive for a witch aren't you?"

Upon mentioning the term witch, Lelouch was reminded of his own bittersweet fate. He reached up to stroke the mark branded upon the side of neck, forever a reminder that he was an immortal being. Having killed his father, he was able to gain Charles' code. He thought of it as one last gift from his father.

Being immortal allowed him to stay with C.C. forever, or rather until someone stole their codes, but it also meant hiding for eternity or at least for the next century. Lelouch had been written into the history books as one of the worst tyrants ever to rule Britannia, even if the sum of his actions brought about world peace, and an overall kinder world. Due to this fact, being discovered posed an even graver danger than the last time he had falsified his passing.

Hopping down from the top of the wagon, C.C. took her rightful seat as the co-pilot at Lelouch's side.

"Do you have any regrets of what you did?" She knew she was touching on a particularly sensitive subject, but she didn't care.

"Of what are you referring to?" Lelouch figured if he got a more specific question, he would be able to answer less than what C.C. wanted to know. Despite the fact that he knew this was going to be a futile attempt, as she was particularly good at reading him.

"Don't beat around the bush, warlock. You know to what I am referring! Do you regret faking you're death in front of the world, and leaving your sister for naught?"

"I had faked my death before, and I did it again. It brought about a kinder world for Nunnally, and you know that! If the whole world believes I'm dead, then so be it." Lelouch trying desperately to retain his composure stared blankly at the road ahead, avoiding eye contact.

"So what you're telling me is you're okay with leaving your younger sister to run the country without her big brother at her side?" Since his 'death' Nunnally had been put in charge, as the first empress of Britannia.

"No," he half whispered, "No, I'm not proud of that. I'm not proud of what I did at all. I did this all for Nunnally's sake, but all I managed to do was lose her…"

_'All I ever needed to be happy was to be with you Big Brother! Open your eyes! Open your eyes Big Brother! Big Brother! Big Brother…?'_

"How bad I wanted to open my eyes, and tell her '_It's okay. I'll always be there for you, forever. I'll be with you forever Nunnally. Don't worry; I'll never leave your side.' _C.C.! That's all I wanted to do… All I needed to do, and I couldn't do it…" Lelouch choked back the tears he so badly wanted to let loose.

C.C. tugged on the reins, bringing their procession to a halt. She looked straight into his violet eyes, and saw right through his façade, saw straight into the sea of pain roiling inside his soul. At that moment, Lelouch gave into his feelings. He grabbed C.C., and held her as his body was wracked with sobs.

"Seeing her… Cry over me… How could I? How could I let her experience such pain… Pain… pain I could have prevented! Why…?"

Holding him for a moment, C.C. whispered into his ear, "Ssh… It's okay now. It's alright. You once said yourself; shedding tears aren't going to change the past. But even so, I'm here for you. I'll always be there for you, forever. I'll be with you forever Lelouch. Don't worry; I'll never leave your side."

"C-C.C?" Lelouch sat up and stared into C.C.'s amber eyes. He was stunned to hear those words spoken, to him. Those same words that had caused him such pain up until this moment now brought him such joy and comfort. It was a strange feeling.

"And I you… My forever witch, *****" He spoke her true name with such care and familiarity, it caught C.C. off guard.

"Lelouch?" C.C. was surprised, but was unsure as to why. All she was sure of was that she wanted to hold him, and never let go. She needed him right now, and he needed her.

Both witch and warlock held each other in a tender embrace comforting each other. The warmth of the other's body warmed the cold feelings until their sorrow melted away into an abyss. Neither wanted to let go, or end the moment.

"Come on C.C.." Lelouch's injured voice was barely audible over the hum of the cicadas. "Let's go..."

The tug of the reins signaled the impatient mares to haul the cart once again. C.C. stayed resting on Lelouch's shoulder, her consciousness waning, until she finally gave into a dreamless sleep.

With C.C. asleep on his shoulder, Lelouch was left to contemplate what had just occurred. Originally he had taken her with him, only because they were accomplices. He always had a certain degree of care for her, but he never had realized how much he really needed her.

They had been forced into each other's company even before the Black Rebellion began. They had been at each other's side through all of it, from beginning to end. And yet, through all of that, he refused to acknowledge his own feelings, suppressing them, and viewing her as simply an accomplice, and nothing more.

_Why did I feel the need to be with her just now? We're accomplices and nothing more. Why does the thought of leaving her here right now bother me? Why did those words bring me such joy? Do I really care that much for her?_

Lelouch shook his head clear his mind of such thoughts. There was no need for such heavy thinking where they were going. He was sure that the answer would be clear in time.

C.C. was woken by the sudden silence. She opened her eyes to find that Lelouch had stopped the cart for a moment to allow the horses a rest before continuing. He picked a particularly awe-inspiring spot atop a hill facing the sunset. It almost seemed intentional.

C.C. found that she was resting against Lelouch's shoulder, her arms wrapped around his, close enough to feel him breathing. Half of her was embarrassed to be so close, and another part wanted to stay like this for a long while. Ultimately the latter half won the mental battle.

From where she was, she had a particularly clear view of his own sigil, something before only she possessed; a mark of immortality. C.C. raised her arm up to touch it. The sigil was slightly colder than the rest of his body, similar to her mental view of it; a cold curse that held the death they could never experience, forcing the warmth of life upon them. Seeing it, touching it reminded her of what he did; what he did for her.

_He committed the ultimate sacrifice… Why did he do it? Was it for me?_

"Lelouch?" C.C. whispered in a hurt voice, "Why did you… W-why did you…" She couldn't bring herself to ask. She tightened her grip of Lelouch's arm. The roles had been reversed from earlier, as she was now the one fighting back the tears.

"Why… Why did you accept immortality as your fate? You could have ended your life… But instead…" Her voice died away, lost to the wind. One tear slid gently down her cheek.

C.C. stroked the back of Lelouch's ivory hand, but in her whirlwind of emotions, inadvertently triggered a merging of consciousness. Images flashed and bits of audio accompanied them, along with what C.C. was feeling when the event had occurred.

What passed where many of the events since they had met. C.C. saving Lelouch;

_"He mustn't die!!"_

C.C. leaving, with feelings of doubt and regret running deep within her;

_"You should be happy Lelouch! We're finally going our separate ways!"_

Choosing Lelouch for the first time;

_"Goodbye…Mao…"_

Committing suicide yet another time to save her beloved Warlock;

_"Of all people, I'm committing suicide with you…"_

And finally, when she decided she didn't care what happened to anyone other than Lelouch;

"_The price you are about to pay for using your Geass on others is a great one…"_

Letting go of Lelouch, ceasing the flashback, Lelouch was taken aback. It was as if he had just viewed his own memories, but they were from someone else's eyes. Every one of her feelings; regret; happiness; fear; it felt like he was feeling them himself. The most prominent feeling of all though, was that of loneliness. The loneliness of believing her love wanted someone else.

Lelouch softly cupped her chin, and wiped her tear away.

"You really felt that way from the first moment you broke out of that capsule didn't you? You don't have to hide it anymore. I feel the same way. I accepted immortality to be with you, *****." At that moment, Lelouch made his decision, "I love you. I love you, *****"

C.C. buried her face into his arm, crying simply from the overwhelming waves of emotion that surged through every fiber of her being.

"You, you really do feel that way too, don't you…" C.C. gazed up into his violet eyes, and this time she saw genuine happiness.

"Yes, yes I do, and that's why I'm taking you with me. Would you like to spend all eternity with me? Come live with me, C.C.?" Although he was just asking her to stay with her, it was deeper than that, as important as asking her hand in marriage.

"Yes! Yes I will! Yes… Lelouch." Her gentle smile that accompanied her words was contagious.

"Alright then. Shall we go, my witch?" Lelouch and C.C. giggled a little at Lelouch's sudden formality.

Suddenly the solemn veil was lifted, and both parties were in a much better mood, and that allowed for more clear thinking, and a humorous recollection of the events that ultimately lead them to this point, the very beginning of their new life together.

And so, witch and warlock headed to their new home, which lie atop a hill somewhere in the countryside of Japan, where they would reside for centuries to come, happily together. A new beginning.

Their address? C20. ;)


End file.
